Turns out design is a piece of cake if you know what you're doing.

Square Shade Sails vs. Triangle Shade Sails

Nov 15, 2017

A matter of design preference or is there a functional difference

No matter if you are a home design fanatic or not, you couldn’t have missed the trendy and cool shade sails. But in case you have, these are shade constructions made out of fabric that is flexible and easy to set up. As the name indicates, they are like ship sails.

What’s more, they come in different shapes. The two most wide-spread shapes are square and triangle. Before you jump to conclusions that the shape doesn’t matter, think again.

The G-String Effect

Although triangular shade sails are very appealing to the eye, they aren’t always the most functional choice. Why so? Because when you set up one triangle shape sail, there are some problems involved. Firstly, you are bound to have at least a few hours a day when you do not get the shade you want where you want it. Secondly, Triangular shapes throw a smaller shade due to their curved edges. Square Shade Sails also have curved lines, but triangular once, affirm these curves. Thus triangle shade sails often “miss” the place where the shade is most wanted. This is known as the “G-String Effect.” What’s more, they are even more impractical when it comes down to rain. They are prone to sagging when not placed right. To add to that, they can protect larger surfaces harder.

Yet, if there are many triangle shade sail that you have used to make a given pattern or form, then all these problems can be avoided. This, however, means you need to invest in more sails. You will also need to have a clear vision of how you want to make the shade structure look and a good understanding how it actually works in practice. Depending on your climate and use-case, waterproof shade sails are definitely a solution that needs to be considered. Still, colourful structures from triangle shades keep popping up all over. You can see them used as backgrounds to photo shoots as well as hanging above school playgrounds to protect kids and provide them with a fun and inspirational environment.

The Hypar Twist

Now, while triangle shade sails might be very interesting and appealing at first, square shade sails are also not far behind, when it comes to looking good. What’s more, you don’t need to consider so many variables as with the triangle shade sail. You simply put two opposing edges of the sail lower, than the other two and voila! You have made the Hypar twist. Not only does it look good, but it is also incredibly practical. This design makes your shade sail much more resistant to wind and thus much more stable and safe. Furthermore, it doesn’t allow sagging to appear. Last but not least, with the hyper twist you can have a cool design in your backyard without losing a square centimetre of shade.

When to use what?

Keeping in mind the difficulties that the triangle shade sail might cause, it is safe to say that it is not recommended for providing coverage and protection for bigger surfaces. That means that if are buying shade sails for a parking lot let’s say or simply want to protect the parking spaces in front of your home; it is better to use square shade sails. When choosing your custom shade sails, ensure you properly research different types of shade fabric for your sails.

But, if you are looking for a way to protect a playground area, we recommend you learn more the benefits of a playground shade structure that is unique and right for your building. You simply need to pay close attention to make sure they serve their purpose.